Ireland skipper hurt his knee taking a catch against Australia before retiring hurt after attempting his first single in Colombo

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Ireland captain Paul Stirling’s knee injury “doesn’t look great”, according to batting coach Gary Wilson, casting serious doubt over the opener’s availability for the remainder of the World Cup. Stirling injured his right knee while landing awkwardly after taking a high catch during Ireland’s defeat to Australia in Colombo.

The injury occurred in the seventh over of Australia’s innings when Stirling leapt to his right to dismiss Josh Inglis. Despite the setback, he came out to open the batting as usual in Ireland’s chase of 183. However, while attempting his first single, Stirling was visibly in discomfort, limping to the non-striker’s end before deciding to retire hurt. He did not return to bat as Ireland were bowled out for 115.

Wilson confirmed that Stirling underwent a scan on Wednesday night, with his participation in upcoming matches still uncertain. “It doesn’t look great,” Wilson said. “He went for a scan this evening, so we’ll have to wait for confirmation. He thought he was OK when he went out there to bat. He wasn’t going to go out if he didn’t think he was right. He was trying to maximise the Powerplay, but when he tried to take off for a single, the knee clearly seized up even more.”

Ireland have now suffered back-to-back losses to Sri Lanka and Australia at the Khettarama Stadium, but they remain mathematically in contention for a Super Eights spot. Their next fixture is against Oman at the SSC on Saturday, followed by a clash with Namibia at Pallekele in Kandy on Tuesday. Stirling’s fitness will be closely monitored as Ireland assess their options ahead of these crucial matches.